Where it comes from
Colombo, named for the Sri Lankan capital, was brought to the French Antilles by 19th-century Tamil indentured laborers; colombo de cabri (goat) is its festive peak.
On the plate
Spoon up colombo de cabri and the goat is fork-tender in a thick, golden, fragrant curry sauce. Bite: the goat is deeply savory and a little gamey, the colombo spice warm and earthy (turmeric, cumin, coriander) with a sour lime lift, the potato soaking up the sauce, a gentle scotch-bonnet heat. The festive curry of the French Antilles, a Tamil-Creole treasure over rice.
How it works
Colombo powder, freshly toasted and ground in the Tamil tradition, is the soul; frying it in oil blooms its flavor before the liquid goes in. Long braising tenderizes the goat and melds the spices, the lime cutting the richness — a curry naturalized over 150 years in the Antilles.
Variations
With chicken or pork. With chayote and green papaya. Spicier. With mango added. With a tamarind sour note. Drier.
On the Palate
Ingredients
Serves 5
How it's made
8 steps · Show ↓40 min active · 80 min waiting
How it's made
8 steps · Show ↓- 132 min
Cut 1 kg goat into chunks; marinate in lime, garlic, and thyme 30 min.
- 28 min
Brown the goat in oil in a heavy pot.
- 35 min
Add 1 chopped onion, garlic, and spring onion; soften.
- 42 min
Stir in 3 tbsp colombo powder (turmeric, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, mustard) and cook 1 min.
- 53 min
Add water to half-cover, thyme, and a whole scotch bonnet.
- 676 min
Cover and braise 75 min until the goat is tender.
- 725 min
Add 2 cubed potatoes (and chayote) in the last 25 min.
- 83 min
Finish with lime juice and serve with rice.
